Live Coverage: Hamilton City Council General Issues Committee on July 30, 2026 [Continuation of July 29 Meeting]

July 30, 2026 at 1:27 PM:

Good afternoon, it is 1:25 p.m.

The meeting is scheduled to begin at 1:30 p.m.

Deputy Mayor for July, Ward 14 Councillor Mike Spadafora just entered the room and playfully looked up at me and say “I’m here, I’m here.”

7 Council members are already seated.

1:29 PM:

There are now eight council members in the Chamber, one via video conference. This means they will have quorum to start.

1:34 PM:

Chair Spadafora gets things moving quickly.

Item 8.2 PED26151 Sport Tourism Hosting Opportunities is quickly APPROVED. This means the City will bid on purchasing the World Junior Hockey tournament.

Council now on Item 8.3 PW26081 Invitation to Municipalities to Register Potential Interest in Implementing a Water and Wastewater Public Corporation Model (ERO-026-0419)

1:36 PM:

Item 8.3 is staff asking City Council if the City of Hamilton wants to comment on the ERO comment period regarding the adoption of a Water and Wastewater Public Corporation Model.

This primarily relates to previous plans to dissolve Peel Region.

Where this potential works is when multiple municipalities share a water and wastewater system.

Hamilton’s system is already benefiting from this, the City’s Director of Water notes.

1:47 PM:

Councillors are expressing concerns about a a Water and Wastewater Public Corporation Model – the risks to Hamilton if this becomes a forced change.
Amendment will come forth at Council ratification next to have the City of Hamilton comments include there be no private profit involved in this new model.

1:51 PM:

City staff are seeking to extend temporary family hotel-overflow shelter funding for six more months (Jan-June 2027), up to $2.6 million from reserve funds, keeping up to 116 family shelter beds available. Then have the new Council determine future funding in the 2027 budget process.

Ward 9 Councillor Brad Clark asks why staff are recommending that this be municipally funded. “When does it stop?”

He says the City needs to require the province and federal government to fund these services.

1:59 PM:

There is discussion regarding how the City will, as staff say, phase out and decrease the number of hotel/motel rooms being used as family emergency shelter.

City staff are planning a Call for Applications this fall to build more permanent family shelter capacity, aiming to reduce reliance on hotel rooms over time. .

2:00 PM:

Council approves the reserve spending.

Approves Item 8.4 HSC26054 Family Shelter Transition and Short-Term Hotel Overflow Funding Extension

2:00 PM:

Council quickly approves

Item 8.5 PED26161 Revised Board of Management for the International Village Business Improvement Area (Wards 2 and 3)

Item 8.6 PED26163 Revised Board of Management for the Ottawa Street Business Improvement Area (Wards 3 and 4)

2:01 PM:

Council is now on Item 8.7 FCS26055 Vacant Unit Tax – 2026 By-law

2:03 PM:

Ward 6 Councillor Tom Jackson ensures to note his continued opposition to the VUT.

Jackson says there will be a motion at Council ratification to remove the $500 appeal fee.

There was a delegate yesterday who spoke about the burden this fee places upon fixed-income seniors.

Ward 15 Councillor Ted McMeekin speaks and opens his remarks by stating he continues to support the VUT and will support the forthcoming motion to eliminate the $500 appeal fee.

2:05 PM:

No vote on the amendment today.

2:06 PM:

NOTE: Only 12 of 16 Council members are present right now.

The pending vote on the VUT will not reflect the final vote next Wednesday. Next week’s vote, unless a Council member unexpectedly changes their position, should be 9-7 to continue the VUT. /highlight

2:11 PM:

Ward 13 Councillor Alex Wilson notes the City of Hamilton is spending $190-million on housing and homelessness each year.
He says the VUT is a non-property tax source to pay for the costs of these services.
This helps property taxpayers, Alex Wilson says.

Ward 12 Councillor Craig Cassar says he supports the VUT, for similar reasons as stated by Alex Wilson.

2:17 PM:

Ward 8 Councillor Rob Cooper asks if the VUT is applied to newly built homes that cannot be sold?

City staff states new homes are exempt for six months in the bylaw, but with the full calculation of vacate days, the exemption of at least one year.

Cooper’s follow-up is what happens when the sale of a new home does not get completed, the purchaser does not close, the house returns to the builder, does the builder get issues a vacant unit tax?

City staff state homes in the process of a sale transaction are exempted, because the seller / new owner only have a VUT obligation for the following year.

Cooper then states the VUT is having a “chilling effect” on new housing in Hamilton.

General Manager of Finance and Corporate Services Mike Zegarac asks to add a comment. He states that tall building condos are exempt from the VUT because it only applies to new developments of six units or fewer.

Cooper gets clarification that new ground-oriented housing units get charged the VUT if they remain vacant.

Staff confirm this.

2:26 PM:

Council is now on Item 8.9 LRTC 26-002 Light Rail Transit Sub-Committee Minutes – July 13, 2026

2:29 PM:

On LRT:

Ward 6 Councillor Tom Jackson asks City staff regarding the status of the written federal funding agreement for Hamilton LRT.

City staff state this would be between the Province and federal government.

City staff state that municipal staff have not seen the business case.

Ward 3 Councillor Nrinder Nann adds that the funds are allocated in the federal treasury.

Ward 9 Councillor Brad Clark speaks after Nann to state that then-federal Minister Catharine McKenna said the funds would not be dispersed without a provincial commitment to affordable housing within surplus LRT lands post-LRT construction.

This is the outstanding issue regarding business case.

Clark notes it seems the affordable housing committee has “disappeared over time.”

2:40 PM:

Item 8.11 is the election sign regulations.

The City Clerk is recommending the City immediately adopt changes to election sign permissions and timelines to comply with recent Ontario Superior Court decisions that struck down sign restrictions as violating the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

Ward 2 Councillor Cameron Kroetsch is concerned about changing sign rules in the middle of an election. Says campaigns have prepared for lawn signs to be allowed in late September.

The proposed change would permits signs on the Monday after nomination day, when candidates are certified.

Kroetsch says there needs to be public consultation, and the change can occur for the 2030 municipal election.

Ward 6 Councillor Tom Jackson says he agrees with Kroetsch.

Jackson says he understand this is a legal matter, but then adds the Court rulings involved other municipalities, not Hamilton.